Resilient wheel.



A. C. WHIDDEN.

y RESILIBNT WHEEL. APPLIUAIION FILED JULY 1s, 1914.

Patented sept. 22, 1914.

r 4 5 i f AUSTIN C. WHIDDEN, 0F LANCASTER, CALIFORNIA.

RESILIEN T WHEEL.

Original application filed October 13, 1913, Serial No. 794,860.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 22, 1914.

1914. Serial No. 850,536.

-To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, AUSTIN C. WHiDDEN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Lancaster, in the county of Los Angeles and State ofCalifornia, have invented a new and useful Resilient Wheel, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This is a divisional application of my application, filed October 13th,1913, Serial No. 794,860.

The invention relates to a wheel of the type having ahub and a rim whichare adapted to move with relation to each other.

The object of the invention is to provide an improved connecting devicefor connecting the hub and the rim of a wheel of this type to causetherim and the hub to move circumferentially together in all their relativepositions.

The accompanying drawings illustratean embodiment of my invention, andreferring thereto:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a wheel and my connecting device appliedthereto. Fig. 2 is a section on line -2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a sectionon line :r3- m3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 isa fragmentary section, showingrv oneof the pneumatic spring elements with its pump. l

The Wheel to which my improved connecting device is applied may be apneumatic resilient wheel, as disclosed in my aforesaid application,which4 wheel comprises a hub l, an inner rim 2 connected to said hub,for example, by spokes 3, an outer rim 4, and pneumatic resilient meansinterposed betweensaid inner and outer rims. The outer rim 4 is providedWithany suitable shoe or tread member 5, for example, of solid rubber,and is formed with annular side walls or flanges 6, adapted to embraceand slide on the inner rim 2. In case said inner rim 2 is formed ofwood, it is provided with .metal bearing plates 7 for sliding engagementwith the anges 6 of the outer rim. A series of pneumatic devices aredisposed between the inner and the outer rim, each of said devicescomprising a pneumatic spring cylinder 9, a pump cylinder 10communicating with said pneumatic spring cylinder 9 by 4a passage orpipe 11 and plungers 12 and 13 working in the respective cylinders 9 and10. The cylinders 9 and l() are secured to the inner rim 2, and theplungers 12 and 13 engage at their outer ends with the inside face ofthe outer rmi, and are preferably -rounded convex. at their outer endsto enable them to slide more readily on such face. The pump cylinder l0is provided with an intake passage or port 1 4, having a check valve 15,normally closed by the spring 16, and an outlet valve 17 is provided inthe passa e 11, normally closed by the spring 18. uitable means, such asa spring 20, is provided for holding the pump plungers 12 to outermostposition.

The operation of the wheel, as a resilient Divided and this applicationfiled July 13, V

wheel, is as follows: As each pump cylinder 10 is, by the revolution ofthe Wheel, brought into the lower part of the Wheel, if a load is on thewheel, the plunger 13 thereof is' pushed into this cylinder 10 byengagement of said plunger with the outer rim 4, which is nearer totheinner rim at the lower portion of the wheel, owing to the load on thewheel. This movement of plunger 13 causes the air to be compresed in thepump cylinder, and, valve 17 being opened under this pressure, a certainamount of air is pressed into the pneumatic s'pring cylinder 9,communicating with said pump cylinder. The pump cylinder 10 for eachpneumatic device is located somewhat in advance of the cylinder 9 of thecorresponding device in the direction of rotation of the wheel, or saidcylinders are otherwise so arranged that the maximum compression in eachcylinder 10 is non-simultaneous with the maximum compression in thecorresponding cylinder 9, so as to permit this pumping action. Thisoperation being repeated at each revolution and taking place in each oneof the pairs of pump and spring cylinders, compressed air is accumulatedin each of the pneumatic cylinders, until the resiliency of suchcylinders becomes suflicient to sustain the load. The valves may be soproportioned that, when the proper pressure is attained, the outletvalve 17 fails to open on the compression stroke, or the inlet valve 15fails to open on the suction stroke, so that the accumulation ofpressure is automatically limited. It will be seen that by vproviding aconsiderable Anumber of pairs of cylinders, a sufficient 30 is securedon the outer rim and over the bars 22.

In order to cause the inner and the outer rims to rotate together, I useconnections, shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the bars 22 being extends pivotedat 23 on the outerrim and extending inwardly past the center of thewheel, said bars crossing and overlapping one another and being`longitudinally slotted, as at 24, to receive a pivot pin 25, whichpasses through the slots 24 of all of said bai-sand forms 'a floatingpivot for connecting all of the bars at the center of the wheel. Pins27, connected to the hub l, for example, by a spider 28, en-

l gagefin the respective slots 24 of the several bars 22, so as to forcethe said bars and the outer rim to rotate with the hub when the latteris rotated, or vice versa. In case, however, there is any lateralmovement of the inner rim and hub, the slotted arms or bars 22 willallow such movement by turning on their pivots and by slipping on theseveral pins 2f. Thus, in ease the hub moves downward from the positionshown in F ig. 1, the

i horizontally extending bar 22 will swing downwardly on its pivot, andthe pivot pin inner rim members, resilient connections' therebetween forresiliently sustaining said inner from said outer member, bars pivotallymounted on said outer member overlapping one another, said bars beinglongitudinally slotted, a fioating pivot engaging ink the slots of all`said bars, andy pins connected to the inner member and havinga-slid`i1'1'gengagement with the respective barsto provide a rotativeconnection between said members while allowing l lateral movementthereof.

In-testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Lancaster,California, this 6th,

day of July 1914.

AUSTIN C. WHIDDEN. In presence of y ALBERT M. HULL, HUGH PETRIE.

